


Hope and Safety

by Lauke_14



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: 2x15 coda, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Kidnapping aftermath, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2020-10-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:13:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26821957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lauke_14/pseuds/Lauke_14
Summary: It's a week after Grace got kidnapped by Danny's ex-partner and while Grace is doing better, Danny's struggling with his guilt.
Relationships: Steve McGarrett/Danny "Danno" Williams
Comments: 16
Kudos: 100
Collections: Snuggles and Hammocks





	Hope and Safety

"Danno," Grace exclaimed, pointing up to a cloud from where she was burrowed into Danny's side, "that one looks like a dolphin!"

Danny looked up at the sky, at the fluffy white cloud that did somehow resemble a dolphin. Looking down at his daughter, who was lying comfortably next to him in the hammock in Steve's backyard, he replied: "A dolphin, huh?"

"Mhmm," Grace nodded excitedly, looking up at Danny with a smile before she focused her gaze on the bright blue sky again.

"Oh look, that one looks like you," Danny said after a while, pointing at a different cloud as he gently squeezed Grace's shoulder, "it looks like a little monkey."

Grace gigged, the sound almost like heaven to Danny's ears. It had been a while since he'd heard that little giggle and he couldn't help but pull Grace a little closer to him, even though she was already pretty much plastered to his side.

Right after the kidnapping, he quickly noticed that Grace had become quieter than her usual self. She didn't want to talk or play at all and when Danny had stayed with her that first night, to allow Rachel to take care of Charlie, all Grace had done was cling to him with a grip so tight he'd wondered where she'd gotten the strength from. To see her open up again almost a week later, to see her talking, smiling and laughing almost as much as she used to do before Peterson took her, made Danny's heart soar.

"Look, Danno! That one looks like Uncle Steve," she told Danny, pulling him out of his thoughts. And sure enough, he thought he could see the image of a seal in the cloud Grace was pointing at...if he squinted hard enough.

They continued to cloud gaze, pointing out funny-looking clouds while the hammock swayed softly in the summer breeze. It was only when Grace burrowed further into his side, almost straddling him completely, that Danny began to wonder how long they had actually been there. "You tired, sweetheart?" he asked when Grace tried her best to suppress a yawn, to no avail.

Danny's lips curled up into a small, sympathetic smile when she nodded into his chest. Her answer didn't surprise him; Rachel had told him that Grace had been having nightmares almost every night since the kidnapping so it was no wonder his baby girl was tired. He briefly kissed the top of her head and asked: "Why don't you try to get some sleep?"

"'kay," Grace answered sleepily, curling her fingers into Danny's shirt, "Will you stay with me, Danno?"

"Of course I'll stay with you. What kind of question is that?" Danny replied, absentmindedly running his fingers through his daughter's long brown hair, "There's no place I'd rather be than right here with you, okay?"

Grace hummed in response, satisfied her Danno wasn't going anywhere, and closed her eyes. "Love you, Danno," she mumbled, barely audible above the sounds of the crashing waves.

And by the time Danny had replied with "I love you too, Monkey", he was pretty sure Grace had already drifted off to sleep.

He didn't know how much time he spent there, swaying in Steve's hammock while basking in the Hawaiian sun, but Danny found he didn't care. The whole world could get lost for all he cared, because _his_ world was right there in his arms and that was all Danny needed.

 _Well, maybe not all_ , he thought as he heard some rustling sounds and Steve appeared by the hammock a few moments later.

"Hey," Steve whispered, crouching down to be on eye level with Danny, "I'm done working on the Marquis for today so thought I'd join you two out in the sun for a bit." He nodded towards Grace, who was still fast asleep in the comfort of Danny's arms. "How's she doing?"

"She's doing good, considering," Danny replied with a soft sigh, "Rachel told me she still has nightmares but other than that, she's perfect."

Steve nodded, smiling at his partner. "She's a strong girl, Danny."

Danny granted Steve a small smile. "Yeah, she is," he agreed quietly before falling silent again.

"What about you?" Steve wondered, glancing down at the grass beneath his feet.

Danny furrowed his brows in confusion. "What about me?"

"You don't think I notice you tossing and turning next to me every night?" Steve asked, watching how Danny turned his head away from him as if he was embarrassed, "You don't need to pretend you're okay around me, babe."

With a chuckle, Danny looked at Steve once more. "I'm not good at compartmentalizing like you," he said sheepishly, referring to Steve's capability to neatly store each emotion away in a locked box somewhere at the back of his brain.

Steve couldn't help but let out a chuckle of his own. "And I don't expect you to be," he replied, reaching out to grab Danny's hand, stilling the swaying hammock as he did so, before he continued, "but you're an expert at talking so...talk to me, okay? Whenever you need to."

He hadn’t really expected a response from the other man so he almost missed Danny’s quiet "This was all my fault,” and the added, “If I hadn't testified against Peterson, he wouldn't have done this" that followed moments later.

"The guy stole evidence, Danny. You're an honest man, you did what you had to do," Steve replied. When Danny stayed silent, staring down at the little girl in his arms, he added, "And blaming yourself...it won't change anything about the past."

Danny huffed in response, to which Steve commented, "You're doing that thing."

"What thing?" Danny asked, tearing his eyes away from his sleeping daughter to look at Steve.

"That exhaling-through-the-nose thing you always do when you know I'm right about something but you don't want to admit it," Steve answered, gesturing at Danny's face.

Refusing to admit Steve was right, Danny chose to change the subject by asking a question that had been on his mind ever since Grace’s kidnapping instead. "What if this happens again? I don't think I could do this again, babe."

"Hey, hey, this won't happen again. If anyone wants to get to you or Gracie, they will have to go through me first, alright?" Steve told him, gently squeezing Danny's hand, "I love you, Danny, and I love Gracie as if she were my own. I would do anything to protect the both of you."

Danny could see the sincerity in Steve's eyes and he remembered how worried Steve had been over him and Grace last week. According to Chin and Kono, Steve had been close to going insane not knowing what had happened to them. He didn't doubt for a second that with Steve by their side, he and Grace would be as safe as they could be. "I love you too," he told Steve and smiled when his boyfriend leaned in to kiss him.


End file.
